How to Build Ethical Artificial Intelligence

The field of artificial intelligence (AI) is exploding with projects such as IBM Watson, DeepMind’s AlphaZero, and voice recognition used in virtual assistants including Amazon’s Alexa, Apple’s Siri, and Google’s Home Assistant. Because of the increasing impact of AI on people’s lives, concern is growing about how to take a sound ethical approach to future developments. Building ethical artificial intelligence requires both a moral approach to building AI systems and a plan for making AI systems themselves ethical. For example, developers of self-driving cars should be considering their social consequences including ensuring that the cars themselves are capable of making ethical decisions.

“Decisions about AI should be based on human needs rather than on greed.” This philosophy is also aligned with Artificial Intelligence World Society (AIWS) for the purpose of promoting ethical norms and practices in the development and use of AI. According to AIWS ethics report, AI can be an important tool to serve and strengthen democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.